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The character 股 originally depicted the thigh or upper leg. In ancient oracle bone script, it often showed a person with emphasis on the thigh region. The character evolved through bronze script and seal script forms before standardizing into its modern form. 股 consists of the radical 月 (肉, meaning 'flesh/body') combined with 殳 (a hand holding a tool), possibly suggesting the muscular, working part of the leg. Its core meaning has remained 'thigh' but extended to include concepts like shares (as in 股份 - stock shares) and sections, metaphorically representing divisions or portions. Arrived in Japan: The character 股 likely arrived in Japan during the 5th-6th centuries CE along with the broader introduction of Chinese writing systems, either directly from China or via the Korean peninsula. It was incorporated into the Japanese writing system as a kanji character, retaining its meanings related to 'thigh' and later adopting financial meanings like 'share' in business contexts.